Improvement in blanks for organ-keys



L. K. FULLER.

Blanks for Organ Keys.

51 152 Patented April27,1875.

TNVEN'TOR. WITNESSES:

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UNITED STATES ATEN LEvI K. FULLER, or BRATTLEBonoUeH, VERMONT, ASSIGNOBTO 3. EsrEY & 00., or SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT lN BLANKS FOR ORGAN-KEYS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 162,467, dated April27, 1875 application filed January 27, 1875.

To all. whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEVI K. FULLER, of Brattleborough,in the county ofWindham and State of Vermont, have invented certain Im provements inBlanks for Keys of Organs, and similar Musical Instruments, (andassigned the same to J. Es'rEY & 00., of the same place,) of whichthefbllowing is a specification:

In the present state of the art, the keys of organs, melodeons, andsimilar musical instruments are made by marking out the entire manual orset of keys, used in the instrument-say five octaves of sixty-onekeys-on a board of suitable length, breadth, and thickness, thenmortising through at the ends of the sharps, or black keys, and sawingin from opposite sides to these mortises, thus separating the individualkeys. Each key is numbered consecutively, beginning at the end of thekey-board, and they are not interchangeable in different instruments,nor even in adjacent octaves of the same instruments. The kerf left bythe saw gives sufficient space between the keys.

My invention relates to a method of constructing blanks from which toout the keys, each blank representing a diiierent form of key, andparticularly adapted to the production of interchangeable keys.

The important features of my invention consist in the peculiar form andconstruction of these blanks, and the method of making the keystherefrom, which I will now describe.

A blank may be made for each and every key in the board but I prefer toso space the keys that only live different blanks will be needed, aswill be explained.

In the drawings, Figures 1, 2, 3, and I are perspective views of theblanks used for the white keys, with the letters marked thereon near therear end, denoting the particular note or notes in the music scale forwhich they furnish keys. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the blank usedfor the black keys, or sharps, which may all be cut from one blank.

In making all of the blanks, except that for the sharps, Itake a boardor piece of wood of the proper kind, of any convenient width. This boardis cut to the right length for the keys, and dressed to the properthickness for the back end of the same. This I call the body A A of theblank. To give the proper breadth to the front end of the keys beyondthe sharps, I glue or otherwise attach to the side or sides of the bodyA, cheek pieces 13 B, dressed to the proper thickness and cut to theproper length. I then glue to the ends of the blanks the veneer a andivory finishing-plate b, and the blank is complete. The keys are thencut from the blank to the proper thickness, as indicated by the dottedlines in the figures, and afterward grooved and bored for the guide andpivot pins, and top plated with ivory, in the usual manner.

It will be understood that only live different kinds of blanks arereally needed, although each key in the key-board may be cut from aseparate blank but to enable me to use only five diiferentkinds ofblanks, it is necessary that the spacing of the keys should beespecially adapted to this end.

The sharp blank shown in Fig. 5 is constructed in a somewhat differentmanner from the others. A board or piece of wood is dressed to theproper thickness of the keys, and cut to the proper length. It is thengrooved at the rear end, as at c in the figure, and the blank isfinished. The keys are cut from. this blank, as indicated by the dottedlines, and mounted with ebony, in the usual manner.

when the keys are made from these blanks they will be interchangeable,letter for letter, and all the keys from one form of blank will bealike, as the parts are all accurately made by machinery.

The pin-holes may be bored in the blanks, or they may be bored in eachkey after it is cut from the blank. It is evident that the blanks shownin Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4: might be each cut from the solid wood, andseparate cheek pieces be thus entirely dispensed with but this would bemuch more expensive than the mode of manufacture I have described andprefer. This, however, although an important feature as regards economyof manufacture, does not affect materially the general result; the blankmanufactured as first described being equal in every respect to thelatter.

FFIQE.

It is not necessary that the veneer and ivory mounting be put on the endof the blank before the key is out therefrom, as they may be put on eachkey separately but I prefer, for convenience and economy in themanufacture,

.to follow the plan described.

for organs and similar instruments, by mak ing the body of the blank Aof the width desired for the rear end of the key, and securing thecheeks B B to the side or sides thereof, to give the proper width to thekey at the front end, substantially in the manner shown, and for thepurposes set forth.

3. The blank for the sharp or black keys, having a thickness equal tothe thickness required in the key, and grooved, as at c, at the rearend, when constructed substantially in the manner shown, and for thepurposes described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

LEVI K. FULLEI.

Witnesses:

W. H. OHrLDs, EDWIN S. Vo'rnY.

